Hand On Your Heart
by Doommonger 22
Summary: '"Aurora, I have no idea how to put a heart back in! I only know one way of taking one out, and that usually involves bladed weaponry, copious blood loss and immediate death!"' Because putting hearts back where they belong is not as easy as you'd be led to believe. Set during series 2, episode 9 "Queen of Hearts". [One Shot]


**Summary:** '"Aurora, I have no idea how to put a heart back in! I only know one way of taking one out, and that usually involves bladed weaponry, copious blood loss and immediate death!"' Because putting hearts back where they belong is not as easy as you'd be led to believe. Set during series 2, episode 9 "Queen of Hearts". [One Shot]

**Disclaimer:** I do not own the characters or anything you recognise from Once Upon A Time.

**Author's Note:** When the humorous comment that I was expecting when Mulan returned Aurora's heart to her body sadly failed to materialise, I realised I had to write this. Before we get to the actual story, I should probably just comment on my standpoint with regard to the Mulan/Aurora/Philip love triangle. Put simply, I don't have one. I can see credit to all of the potential matches – Mulan/Philip, Aurora/Philip, Mulan/Aurora and Mulan/Aurora/Philip – but I really don't care enough to be bothered about how it all turns out in the show. Please read, review and enjoy!

**Hand On Your Heart**

Mulan hurries back to Aurora, barely able to contain her excitement. She has Aurora's heart, the princess is free again. Things might just be looking up.

Snow and Emma should have made it home by now. Assuming of course that they made it past Cora and Hook, but Mulan is confident that they have. Despite her initial resentment of them, Mulan has learnt one thing over the past few days – Emma Swan and Snow White are a formidable team when they put their minds to it. They'll have made it home and things in the Enchanted Forest can return to how they were.

Not that that is necessarily a good thing for Mulan and Aurora. After all, they aren't returning to a comfortable life with their loved ones in Storybrooke – they're still stuck in the Enchanted Forest which is full of Ogres, Giants and Zombies. Plus if Emma and Snow made it through the portal then that means Cora and Hook didn't and _that_ means that they are still here in the Enchanted Forest. And if they're still in the Enchanted Forest, they're still a potential problem for Mulan and Aurora. Mulan has no idea how desperate the pair actually are to get to Storybrooke; it's perfectly plausible that they'll hunt down her and Aurora for nothing more than satisfaction in the face of their defeat. It's not a comforting thought. Let them try, thinks Mulan. She can take anything they can throw at her. She and Aurora will survive, no matter what. She promises herself that, hand on her heart. Actually, it's hand on Aurora's heart… literally.

Aurora seems suspicious when Mulan reappears. Mulan can understand why – she pulled out of the brawl with Cora and Hook early in order to return Aurora's heart, so it's understandable that the princess feels that Mulan hasn't been gone for long enough. Memories of what happened with Lancelot are still fresh in her mind. This could be a trap.

"Stop," says Aurora as Mulan approaches. Mulan sighs but does as she's told. "You're not Cora in disguise, are you?"

"Aurora, that has to be the stupidest question I've ever heard. Do you really think if I was Cora in disguise I would just tell you if you asked nicely?"Aurora stares at her for a long time.

"It must be you," she says eventually. "No one else is quite so infuriating." Mulan rolls her eyes.

"Thanks," she says her voice heavy with sarcasm. "It's good to see you too." Aurora sticks her tongue out at her.

"You're welcome." Mulan holds up the heart.

"I can just as easily go away again," she says, shrugging matter-of-factly. "There are plenty of other princesses in need of their hearts being returned. I'm a _very_ busy woman and I simply don't have the time to waste here." Aurora fixes her with an unamused expression.

"That's not funny."

Mulan shrugs again. "That depends on where you're standing, actually."

Aurora's scowl grows darker.

"Shut up and give me my damn heart back."

X

It is only when they actually reach the stage of putting Aurora's heart back that Mulan realises that she doesn't actually have the slightest clue what she's doing. She pauses, and Aurora notices. The princess frowns.

"What's wrong?" she asks. Mulan wonders exactly how much blind faith Aurora has in her, but doesn't respond. The furrows in Aurora's brow deepen. "Have you done this before?"

Of all the questions…

"No." Mulan decides that trying to sugar-coat this won't work.

"You haven't?" Aurora sounds genuinely surprised. There is a brief silence. "I'm going to die, aren't I?" She sounds rather faint.

"No, Aurora you're not." Mulan gives her a stern look. "I swore to Philip I would protect you and I will. I'm not letting you die, not now. Not ever. I promise."

"Hand on your heart?" Aurora asks, without thinking. Mulan glances from the heart in her hand to its owner.

"Nope." She grins. "Hand on yours." Aurora can't help but laugh. The laughter dies down all too quickly.

"Seriously though," Aurora says eventually. "Put it back in." Mulan's eyes widen.

"Aurora, I have no idea how to put a heart back in! I only know one way of taking one out, and that usually involves bladed weaponry, copious blood loss and immediate death!" There is a heavy silence before Mulan passes the heart to its owner. "I don't think I'm qualified to do this." Aurora looks at her heart with a look something akin to abject horror.

"Why do you think I'm qualified?" she shrieks.

"It's your heart!"

"Right," says Aurora, sounding more confident than she feels. "I'm going to do it." There is a terribly long silence. "I'm going to do it." She repeats. The silence stretches into minutes. Eventually, Mulan can't take it anymore.

"Just do it!" Aurora's hand remains hovering over her chest, clutching the heart.

"I can't!"

"Why not?" Mulan yells.

"Because it's scary!" Aurora replies at equal volume. Mulan sighs. This isn't getting them anywhere.

"Give it here," she says, extending her hand. Reluctantly, Aurora hands it over. Realising what her friend is about to do, Aurora takes a deep breath to prepare herself. It doesn't work, so she takes several more.

"We'll count down from three," she suggests. Mulan nods.

Aurora has barely opened her mouth to say 'three' when Mulan curls her hand round the heart and, with a roar not unlike the battle cries Aurora has heard her shout in the past, plunges her fist into Aurora's chest.

The pain is unimaginable and Aurora can't stop herself from crying out.

"FUUUU…" She has to bite down hard on her tongue to stop herself saying something very unladylike.

Aurora is used to having a heart, and has to admit that she didn't feel any noticeable difference after it had been taken out. But she knows, she is absolutely _certain_, that this doesn't feel right. Mulan is staring at her, eyes wide and hands covering her mouth. Aurora isn't sure if this is because she's shocked or because she's trying her best not to laugh.

"Are you alright?" Mulan asks eventually. Aurora just looks at her for a long time as the initial wave of pain passes, being replaced by a strange unnatural beating in her chest, before she responds. When she finally speaks, the tone of her voice is somewhere between horror and incredulity.

"I think you've put it in upside down!"


End file.
